Health & Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced nationwide raids seizing Chinese-made vapes, calling it the start of a wider crackdown.
“The Chinese are getting richer while our children get sicker, and we’re putting an end to that,” Kennedy declared at a press conference on Monday. “Between August 1 and August 14, in partnership with the ATF [Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives] and FDA [Food and Drug Administration], we did purchases at distributors in five different states: in Illinois, New Jersey, North Carolina, Arizona, and then we did more in California and Florida with ATF.”
Kennedy said the operation involved ATF inspections at 14 retailers and HHS investigators focusing on five distributors
“The result is today, we are doing raids … across the country to confiscate the vapes. Today, these gentlemen of ATF and FDA confiscated 50 truckloads of this material, and 90 percent of it comes from China,” Kennedy said. He emphasized that the actions are designed “to target the biggest distributors, and also to send a message throughout this entire industry that this will not be tolerated anymore.”
Kennedy credited Attorney General Pam Bondi with leading the effort, stating: “There’s a new sheriff in town. Her name is Pam Bondi, and we are going to target these Chinese vapes and stop them from poisoning our children.”
Kennedy’s remarks echoed past warnings about Chinese influence, noting in 2023 that hedge funds and Chinese investors were turning U.S. farms into “corporate fiefdoms” and citing China’s ownership of 384,000 acres. His announcement comes amid broader actions, including claims that HHS enabled child trafficking under Biden, as well as new efforts to phase out synthetic food dyes and update dietary guidelines.
In July, the Justice Department charged two Chinese nationals with serving as agents of Beijing in an alleged scheme to gather intelligence on U.S. military personnel and facilities.
